Rev. Al Sharpton, center, accompanied by La Raza President Janet Murguia, right, and National Urban League President and CEO Marc Morial, left, and others, speaks during a news conference outside the West Wing of the White House in Washington, Monday, July 29, 2013, about the Voting Rights Act, after a meeting with President Barack Obama and Attorney General Eric Holder. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

President Barack Obama assured civil rights leaders Monday that his administration would continue to fight to uphold access to the ballot box in the wake of a Supreme Court decision last month that struck down a major provision in the Voting Rights Act.

The president spoke privately at the White House with more than a dozen elected officials and civil rights activists, promising additional action to protect minority voting rights. Several participants said they were encouraged by the president’s commitment to this issue and to upholding what remains of the Voting Rights Act.

“They will continue to aggressively fight to protect the rights of all Americans to vote,” the Rev. Al Sharpton, president and founder of the National Action Network, said after Monday’s meeting with the president. “There is a wound in the Voting Rights Act, but it is far from dead.”

A Supreme Court ruling in June invalidated the section of the Voting Rights Act requiring certain jurisdictions to obtain federal approval for all voting changes. At the time, Mr. Obama described the decision as deeply disappointing and called on Congress to act. Last week, Attorney General Eric Holder opened a new front in this battle, asking a panel of judges in Texas to continue to require advance approval for voting changes in that state and as he promised additional scrutiny in other states.

The officials who met Monday with the president, Mr. Holder and Labor Secretary Thomas Perez outlined a range of plans to protect voting rights, including voter registration and education efforts, as well as an Aug. 24 rally to coincide with the 50th anniversary of the March on Washington.

Sherrilyn Ifill, president and director-counsel of the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, said Mr. Obama pledged to do everything within his power to protect voting rights, but she questioned why this fight continues.

“We think it’s sad, frankly, that we’re at this moment, that we have to engage in this kind of work to ensure that our democratic processes remain open,” Ms. Ifill said.

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